Radiators Are Not Steaming

i have a van wert 1600 coal furnace,, last year I had burned coal with no problem,, radiators would steam and get very hot,, this year have tried coal from the same place as well as 2 different other places and I have no steam! radiators will get hot but that is it,, also my ashes are more black then ash,, looks like half burnt coal,, is there any settings that can be changed? it almost seems like the auger is pushing too much coal through and we are going through a lot more coal then normal,,, any suggestions,, thank you

I take it you have a steam boiler, not a furnace (hot air). Also, please tell us what kind of steam heat system you have. Is it "one Pipe Steam" meaning there is only one pipe coming from basement to the radiator that handles both steam and consensate or a "two Pipe system" where there is a pipe coming into rad and a second pipe coming out other side. Also, When you say "radiators would steam" last season do you mean actually have steam come out the vents or do you mean they just got very hot fully across all the radiator?

Without waiting for a response if you had steam coming out your rads that is not good and not proper steam heat. If you have a One Pipe system then your air vents on the rads were not working properly; i.e. they were venting but not closing when steam hit them. This season, your vents on the radiators may be in the stuck closed position. Not good as well because they can not vent the excess air in the pipes to allow steam to enter. Two pipe has a different vent system.

What you should also address is your "Main Vents" which are in the basement and located at the end of your steam pipe runs. They need to be working properly to vent out cold air allowing steam to enter pipes and travel through system. Excess amounts of coal use with minimal heat is a clear symptom of this. Have a person familiar with steam check it out or go here and learn:

http://www.heatinghelp.com/article-categories/16/Steam

Where do you live?

Steam issues aside, it sounds like you have some rock and dirt in your coal.

Sometimes it is simple as removing the vent, dumping the water out of them,then screwing them back in. If none of the radiators are getting hot, you may have other problems. Has the chimney cleanouts been emptied?

wessmess wrote:i have a van wert 1600 coal furnace,, last year I had burned coal with no problem,, radiators would steam and get very hot,, this year have tried coal from the same place as well as 2 different other places and I have no steam! radiators will get hot but that is it,, also my ashes are more black then ash,, looks like half burnt coal,, is there any settings that can be changed? it almost seems like the auger is pushing too much coal through and we are going through a lot more coal then normal,,, any suggestions,, thank you

It sounds like you need to open the air adjustment somewhat. Also, if you haven't cleaned the fines out regularly from the bottom of the stoker, it might be time to do that. (Be careful not to break the heads off the bolts that hold on the cleanout cover - if your unit has one - and please don't ask how I know that. )

Mike

Not familiar with your boiler. Is your low water cut off a newer probe type? These have been failing lately at a high rate. I know of 5 other installs where the low water cut off malfunctioned, and I have personally experienced the same problem. McDonnel miller used to be top notch, but they should remedy these bad lwco's. It is rather bs that people have to go through this with brand new equipment. This intermittent operation from the LWCO could cause short cycling and excess fuel consumption, and would also prevent the boiler from getting up to proper operating temp.

The next issue could be main vents, and then radiator vents themselves. Check these, make sure they are not blocked, or blowing steam constantly.

Fines could be giving you trouble, or blocked air passages. You might be better off shutting down and inspecting everything, cleaning the air passages out, ridding everything of fines etc.

Good luck, and keep us updated.